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Maintenance worker is killed when backed over by a bucket loader at a glass recycling center.

A 48-year-old maintenance worker died when backed over by a bucket loader at a glass-recycling center. The victim was performing maintenance on a sprinkler system at the time of the incident. The victim was standing on a mound of glass repairing a sprinkler system that was mounted on a retainer wall, which separated different bins of colored glass. The loader was scooping up glass out of the bin the maintenance worker was in and emptying the glass in a hopper which was located on the opposite side and end of the work area. The loader was making repeated trips to load and unload glass. According to the Deputy Sheriff who initially investigated the incident, the back-up alarm on the loader was not operational when checked immediately after the incident. The Deputy also stated that when the loader was powered on in order to check the back-up alarm, the radio in the cab automatically came on and was extremely loud. The CA/FACE investigator determined that, in order to prevent future occurrences, employers, as part of their Injury and Illness Prevention Program (IIPP) should: 1. Ensure that back-up alarms are operational when required on vehicles. 2. Ensure that operators of heavy equipment have minimal extraneous distractions such as radios. 3. Ensure employees remain out of areas where heavy equipment is operating. 4. Ensure employees are adequately trained and that worker's achievement of skills is verified through a testing program.